Naruto: Hayabusa
by Dr1ft3r0I
Summary: An elite Spartan V finds a relic of an ancient world, and unwittingly starts a chain of events that will change the course of one ninja's life. Sorry I haven't gotten to the jutsu section of the story, but hey, this is only the first bloody story arc! Starts sometime during Halo: Glasslands.
1. Chapter 1

**March 2553, **_**UNSC Research Vessel Ivanoff**_

Spartan BC-721 looked at the screen in front of him and groaned. Apparently, today was one of those days when Parangosky would allow him out of 'room,' and let him roam the station. The seventeen year old super-soldier prototype knew better. He was a prisoner onboard this station, and the staff knew it. Turning around, the Spartan looked at the suit of Mark V MJOLNIR Powered Assault Armor and shook his head. Today, he wasn't going to be a faceless tool of destruction. He was going to be himself…as much of himself as ONI allowed.

Two minutes and a change into regulation off-duty wear later, 721 left the room and went down to the mess hall, hoping that no one was there. Alas, there weren't, with the exception of three people besides the cook. Two of them were armed guards, ODST by the armor, and a middle aged woman who was eating what appeared to be steak and gravy with a side of what the chef called cornbread. Personally, the Spartan thought it was used up Biofoam, but who could tell? Grabbing a plate of fried rice and two glasses of protein enhanced water, 721 went and sat down at an empty table and started eating.

He had finished eating half of the rice and most of the first glass of water when 721 looked up to see one of the ODST's standing by his table. "She would like to speak to you," the shock troop said, jerking his head back towards the lady still at the other table, now looking at the Spartan intently. 721 grunted and got up, taking his tray with him. The Spartan came over to the only other occupied table in the room and sat down, the ODST that asked him to come over now standing next to the woman again. Glancing at her, the Spartan noted that while she was indeed in her middle ages, the lines on her face made her seem _much_ older.

The two of them ate in silence for a few minutes before the woman spoke up. "So," she stated, "You are a Spartan?" 721 was surprised that she could tell, but nodded in confirmation anyway. The woman looked at him dead in the eye. "What series are you? And what is your name?"

721 shrugged. "I am Sierra Seven-Two-One, name and program classified," he said bluntly. The woman laughed, and it was clear that is something she didn't do often.

"I see," she said after recovering from her laughing fit. "But when you think about it, what can ONI possible classify as more top secret than our mutual existences?" she asked. 721 looked at her oddly. Well, when she put it like that….

"It's N."

The woman looked at 721 as if he had grown another head, and it was that of a Kig-Yar. "You share a name with the letter of the alphabet?"

N looked off to the side. "Better than my actual name."

The woman looked at N expectantly. N shook his head. "Look, I don't remember it. I was eight when I started using my name, and I've been using it since. I just don't remember."

The woman sighed. "I see. And you're not curious as to who I might be?"

N shook his head. "Not really," he said simply. "You're a middle aged woman who obviously pissed the living hell out of Mad Marge, and you not only correctly guessed that I was a Spartan, but you even asked what series I was. That leaves only one viable option as to who you are, and it is indeed nice meeting you Doctor Halsey."

Halsey was surprised that the Spartan she had just met was able to deduce her identity that quickly. "And how were you able to deduce my identity?" she asked.

N shrugged. "Parangosky is quite vocal about how evil you are," he said, draining the second glass of water in one gulp. "And most of the personnel here have been briefed on your actions and hate your guts.

Halsey looked at N as the ODSTs got her up to leave. "Do you hate me?" she asked.

N got up as well, his tray empty. "I can't say," was all he said before he left the mess hall.

:\_/:

N slammed his fist into the reinforced punching bag, almost sending it flying from its stationary spot on the floor. Barely breaking a sweat, the super-soldier stepped back and was about to use a roundhouse kick when he saw an officer watching him. Stopping the kick midair, N snapped into attention, a salute snapping up to his forehead.

"At ease N-721," said Vice Admiral Margaret Parangosky.

N relaxed and went back to punching the bag. "What do you want ma'am?" he asked, doing his best **not** to look at the ninety year old demon.

Parangosky looked at N. "You met Doctor Halsey." It wasn't a question. N responded by actually punching the bag off from its moorings of the solid titanium deck plating and nodded. "What did you think of her?"

N moved over to the pull up bar. "Can't say," he said. "I only talked with her about five minutes, at most ma'am. She seems defeated though."

Parangosky chuckled. "Well, she is after all technically dead and imprisoned for crimes against humanity."

N pulled himself up. "As if Operations PROMETHEUS and TORPEDO weren't crimes in and of themselves," he gasped out.

Parangosky looked at him sternly. "I beg your pardon Spartan?"

N dropped down from the bars and looked at the officer. "A combined total of nearly six hundred dead Spartans isn't a victory ma'am," he said. "It's a defeat whether you care to acknowledge it or not."

Parangosky looked furious only for a brief second. Sighing, the Admiral looked at a datapad she had in her hands. "N-721, you've been given a rather unique mission."

N looked at her suspiciously. "Really? After all this time being stuck here? I'm ecstatic," N said sarcastically. Parangosky nodded.

"Yes, and before you leave you'll stow the attitude," she said coldly. "You'll be embedded in the Freelancer Project; it seems that their director has become quite paranoid about ONI oversight."

_I wonder why,_ N thought. "I see. And I'll be doing what exactly?"

"Undercover work. You'll be sending me anything you learn about that project from the inside. Do what you can, and after this project falls apart, and I know it will, you'll report to Captain Osman for debrief."

N took a swig of water. "When do I leave?"

"Tomorrow. We even have a name for you in the program.

"Hawai'i."

:\_/:

_Two Years Later_

N was glad that he could get rid of that stuffy old suit that Project Freelancer gave him. Apparently the Director was an idiot if he thought that the MJOLNIR Mk. IV was advanced. Because it had done nothing to stop a tomahawk from digging into his shoulder about three months ago. Hell, it was actually rather refreshing to see his custom Mk. V armor.

Currently, N was on the _UNSC Infinity_, the largest human vessel ever built in history. The nineteen year old was walking down the halls, minding his own business when he saw an old face. Walking up to her, he asked, "Doctor Halsey, I presume?"

She had aged quite a bit in the two years he hadn't seen her. Halsey's hair was greyer, and now the woman truly was showing signs of age. It took her a second to recognize the Spartan in front of her. "N! What a pleasant surprise. I thought you were killed off by Margaret."

N shook his head. "No, I haven't. Been on a long term mission for her and Osman. Just got back about four days ago."

Halsey nodded. "I see. Would it have anything to do with the _Mother of Invention _crashing on a frozen rock?"

N shook his head. "That wasn't me, of that I can assure you. How have you been?"

Halsey sighed dejectedly. "I've never been so worked to the bone before. Designing the new suits, helping to integrate the Forerunner tech into the _Infinity_…its aged me more than running the Spartan II program," she answered.

N was about to speak when the ship's PA system spoke up.

"_Sierra 721 and Doctor Catherine, please report to the portside Hanger Three immediately. 721 and Doctor Catherine, please report to portside Hanger Three."_

Little did they know what fate had in mind for them.

/\/\  
\/\/

**Sorry if I didn't get to the core of this story right away, but I am a sucker for character development, so you'll have to bear with me. As of right now, there are no pairings of any kind, and likely won't be for a while. If anyone can guess when in Red vs. Blue N appeared in the review section, well, the first reader gets their name mentioned at the start of one of the next few chapters! Looking forward to Halo 4 coming out! **

**Stay frosty marines!**


	2. Chapter 2

N and Halsey got down to the number three hangar bay, only to find that the only ones there were former Captain Serin Osman, and Black Box, or BB. As the two approached, N cracked his neck in annoyance. Coming to a stop, N snapped to attention as Halsey frowned at her former Spartan trainee.

"So, for what did you call us here for Serin?" Halsey asked, formalities not foremost in her mind at the moment. Serin responded with a look that could quite possibly freeze any molten ball of rock dead in its tracks.

"We found a Forerunner artifact on Earth, this time in Japan," Osman said. BB picked that moment to continue Osman's little snippet of info.

"Yes, a very small relic whose purpose we still cannot guess," griped the A.I. N looked over Osman's shoulder and saw the relic in question. It was about four feet long by about fifteen inches in diameter. Barely paying any attention to Osman ranting about how it could be anything, including "a giant tube full of cornbread," N walked over to it and lifted it up from the examination table. Looking it over, N grabbed the end of it, and with a suppressed grunt, popped the seal off the giant canister.

Serin almost lost it before N pulled out a…scroll. An actual, honest to God scroll. It looked fairly worn, and seemed to have a reddish gold border along the edges. "What is that?" BB asked.

"It's a scroll," N deadpanned. "Judging by the aesthetics of the border, possibly pre-Meiji Restoration, with a combination of kanji and hiragana script. Make a good mantelpiece."

To say that the A.I. was impressed was an understatement. The code flowing along BB's body actually stopped for a full five seconds before it started moving again. The same could also be said of Halsey and Serin. N had only just seen the scroll and yet he knew more about it than the two of them. "Can you translate it?" Halsey asked.

N shrugged with one shoulder. "Yeah, I can try," he responded. "It'll take a while though; my Japanese is a bit rusty in the kanji department."

"Do you require assistance N-721?" BB asked politely. N shook his head.

"No, I've got this. Although if the good doctor is able, she can come and help if she wants."

Halsey nodded in appreciation while Osman frowned. "Doctor Halsey will assist you when **I** deem it so," Osman said coldly. "You'll look into this scroll while your shoulder heals. Understood?" That last part wasn't really a question, so much as a challenge.

N wisely nodded. "Yes ma'am," he said, tucking the scroll under his arm.

"Good. Dismissed, both of you."

N saluted and left, giving Halsey one last nod of respect before leaving the hanger. Halsey, for her part, went to go back with working with the Huragok. Serin turned to look at BB. "BB, keep an eye on them. If they start acting odd, I want you to tell me, understood?" she asked.

"Oh yes, I understand perfectly," BB retorted. "All I have to do is simply monitor them more closely."

Serin humphed in annoyance. "BB, just do it," she ordered. "I have to order a few operatives out in the black to do some more interference on the Storm faction."

BB, even if he was a cube, gave the impression of a nod as Osman left. Seconds later, BB blinked out of existence, the A.I. going off to do his duty.

:\_/:

_One Week Later_

N sat on his bunk in the _Infinity_, slowly translating the scroll. It was…rather interesting, to say the least. From what he'd been able to translate so far, it read like a sort of spiritual contract between a nature spirit and what N assumed to be the samurai or high priestly caste. The contract stated that the 'summoner,' could summon the spirit onto the battlefield for assistance, and in one little clause, N read that the signee would not be able to make another contract without the spirit's approval. What truly stupefied N was the Kami that this scroll made a contract too. It was, according to the description, a "wolf that roams the swaying grass, wolf with foxes wit, and serving that which is true and free."

While the Office of Naval Intelligence didn't train their Spartans to be poets, N had a pretty good idea on what the hell the scroll was talking about. Only thing was, the creature in question wasn't exactly a wolf, or even to any of Japan's islands. In saying that, how the hell was N going to explain to Osman that the scroll was a spiritual contract with coyotes; animals that Japanese wouldn't be exposed to until the mid-1800s?

But then again, they must have been serious if they had required the signee to do it in blood. N looked at the scroll thoughtfully. It was old, and he was bored as hell. Why not sign it? Besides, what could possibly go wrong? N cut open his thumb-only a small cut to be honest, quick to heal-and signed the scroll with the single, solitary letter that comprised his name. After that, he made a rather nice bloody palmprint in the area provided.

Nothing happened. Sighing, N rolled the scroll up and left his room to report to Osman. What he didn't know was just how far-reaching his signing of that scroll went.

:\_/:

_Elsewhere_

"Lord Raynor, Lord Raynor!" yelled the runner as she sprinted down the halls of the keep. Skidding to a stop, the young servant bowed her head to her master, panting.

At the age of roughly six hundred and seventy-two, Lord Raynor Blackstreak of the Coyote Summon's Moon Singer Clan had seen quite a bit in his life. Including seeing the person he had sworn fealty to disappear. Turning to his servant, Raynor asked, "Yes Selena, what is it?"

Selena got up quickly. "My Lord," she said, trying to contain her excitement. "The Shaman said that something has happened! And she's requesting every clan head to meet at the sacred pit!"

Raynor felt equal parts elation and dread. The last time the Shaman had said that something happened, it was when Lady Aleyna, the Kyuubi no Kitsune, had reappeared from a one hundred and twenty year spiritual journey, only to be sealed into a human. Understandably, Raynor was cautious. "I see," Raynor said back. "Selena, got get the other clan heads. Hopefully the Shaman has good news this time." Selena bowed and ran off, her youthful stamina doing wonders for her this time.

Raynor sighed. He dearly hoped that this going to be good news. After all, what could it possibly be? Some idiot had found their scroll? Unlikely. That thing had been missing for millennia, and at this point, was likely to have simply rotted away. Oh well. There was a meeting he had to go to, and Raynor simply could not afford to not go to it.

**I have a few things to clarify on this fic. One, N is not in any way Naruto. Yes, N will be learning jutsu, but he won't be like Kakashi or Naruto and be absurdly powerful. Second, I may or may not include N's memories of his time in Project Freelancer. And like I have in several of my fics, OC's are welcome. Just give me name, age, gender, personality, whether they can use any amount of jutsu or not, and a little bit of background info on them. Also, be aware that I may not include all submitted OC's; I simply need to focus on the MC's, and not every Tom, Dick, and Harry. As for how this is going to be a crossover, well, I'm getting there. Any way, this is the author, hoping that you're enjoying this story so far. **


	3. Chapter 3

"So in effect Spartan," Osman said slowly as she regarded the soldier in front of her. "This scroll is a piece of junk?" The Spartan nodded. Osman sighed. "Very well. We have another mission for you. You're to head over to New Hope and quell the local Insurrection. Direct Action against Innie leaders has been authorized. Any questions?"

N nodded. "Yes ma'am. Is the _Staff of Charon_ in system?" he asked. Osman shook her head.

"No sign of it so far," she told N. N frowned. The _Staff of Charon_ wasn't a starship that you could just misplace like a keycard. For starters, it was a _Midlothian_ class heavy destroyer, and a stolen retrofitted model at that. If ONI wasn't able to track that ship, then something was sure as hell about to go wrong.

"I see ma'am," N said simply.

Osman nodded. "Good. Dismissed 721," she said, waving him off. N saluted and left. Once he left, N scowled. He didn't like what the Innies did as much as the next service member, but he didn't blame them for wanting out. After all, the UNSC _did_ leave most of the Outer Colonies unguarded, focusing on the spiritual and actual home of humanity, Earth. Personally, N could somewhat identify. He was raised a lab rat in an ONI research facility in a remote section of space. He had wanted out for a _long _ass time, and it was pretty much only when he was given the Freelancer assignment that he had a taste of relative freedom.

Walking down the halls of the _Infinity_, N stopped by the hanger and watched as Pelicans and the occasional Albatross came in and out of the ship, ferrying both men and supplies.

"My, my, what surprise to see you here." N turned to look at Dr. Halsey, flanked by an Engineer on one side and an ODST on the other.

"Likewise," N said. "So, what can I do for you Doc?"

Halsey sighed. "Well, seeing as this one of the few times in the day that Serin gives for me to relax, I'd thought I'd try talking with you. Is that a problem Lieutenant?"

N shook his head. "No, not at all," he replied, getting up. "I'd actually like the company personally." Smiling, the scientist and young soldier walked for about ten minutes to Halsey's 'office,' before said scientist turned to the ODST and the Engineer.

"I'll be fine in here," she said bluntly. The ODST, whom N noted had remained silent the whole time, shrugged and nodded. The Engineer chirped and floated away, looking at a conduit that apparently needed to be fixed. N and Halsey entered the office, leaving the poor ODST, known to some as the Rookie, outside to wait in boredom; or as the ODST was fond of doing, giving the impression of sleeping on the job, while in reality, he was trying to listen in on what the doctor and Spartan were saying.

\/\/

"So, what do the powers that be in ONI have you doing now N?" Halsey asked as she picked up a mug of coffee. Taking a sip, she frowned as she once again realized that the beverage was stone cold. Again. N for his part shrugged.

"Same thing I did in Freelancer," he said. "Take care of Innies. But I have a sort of well, problem Doc."

Halsey looked over at N. "Oh? And what is that?" she asked. Halsey knew that as much as Serin _hated_ her, the former Spartan II candidate did allow her some amount of privacy by not bugging her office. Well, at least, only the comms were bugged.

N let loose his own sigh. "I want to get out of all this." When he saw Halsey's confused expression, he added, "I don't want to be just a living, breathing tool to kill people who have every right to be angry with the UNSC. I just,…I just want to know that I matter to someone as a person, and not as some kind of bomb that they can drop. I want to be free."

Halsey looked at N. "And why can't you? You've done the right amount of service, haven't you?"

N shook his head. "Doc, I was made in a test tube. I was _bred_ to be a super soldier before I was even born. I am quite literally the property of ONI. No amount of paperwork covers that."

Halsey sighed as she went over to where the Spartan was. "N, I'm sorry. But I don't know if I can help you."

N shrugged. "Look, Doc, I appreciate your concern, but all I need to do is use the freighter ONI will give me for my next mission and head off to one of our new colony worlds. Start over there I guess."

"N." N looked down at the steely gaze of the much older woman. "If you leave, promise me that you'll do your best at whatever it is that you are doing."

N gulped. "Yes ma'am."

Halsey nodded. "Very well. So, how did decoding that scroll go?" N told her the same thing he told Osman, with addition of his signing it. Halsey shook her head at this. "Why?"

N threw his arms up in exasperation. "Hey, I was bored! I don't exactly have a whole lot of non-military hobbies you know!"

Halsey smiled. "I know N. Well, I'm sorry to cut this short, but I believe it is time for us to go our separate ways, hmm?"

N nodded in agreement and exited the room, not really noticing the Rookie looking after him.

/\/\

Raynor reached the pit just as the Shaman was about to start. "Ahh, Lord Raynor, just the one I hoping to see at this convening," the Shaman said, her old, age ridden voice racked in amusement at her own joke. The old coyote fem's cataract filled eyes gleamed in mischief as Raynor sighed.

"Wise One, you have called us here, and we humbly ask what is the reason?" Raynor asked, getting straight to the point. Shaman turned her head to 'look' into the fire blazing before her.

"Our summons contract has been found and signed," she stated. "A soldier, a boy who wishes for a chance to be free." The Coyote Clan heads all turned to each other and murmured. "This child," Shaman continuing, halting all other voices, "Needs a guide. He shall exchange the purpose of being a tool for others, with that of guardian, of brother, and of savior."

"Savior to whom?" asked one of the heads.

Shaman shook her head. "The Spirits do not say," she said. "But tonight, he rests, and tomorrow, we bring him home to his future. Lord Raynor, I shall require the use of the Ancient Seal."

Raaynor gulped. That Seal was the only reason that the Flood, amongst other things in the other planes, hadn't found them. By giving it to Shaman, he would essentially be telling her to momentarily break the seal in order to get this summoner. And that may cause more problems than the Coyote lord already had. "The Seal shall be yours to do as you wish to bring him to our world," Raynor said solemnly.

Shaman nodded. "Thank you. Tonight, the seal shall be undone enough to where he may enter our realm. When he comes, and indeed he shall, it will be in an iron bird from beyond the sky."

The Clan Heads assembled collectively looked up to the stars, those little gems of light that were now showing themselves in the heavens. Raynor sighed. "If that is all Shaman, then we shall take our leave, as not to disturb you." With that, Raynor turned, only for the Shaman to speak one last time.

"Raynor, his guide shall the rose of your heart, his brother the one who is spurned, and he shall guard that we have lost for so long now."

Raynor shivered under his fur. He didn't like how Shaman had phrased that, and he was pretty sure who the rose close to his heart.

If and when this human came, Raynor was going to have a nice, _long_ talk with him about his daughter Selena.

\/\/\/\

**Okay, so now we're getting close to where N and Naruto will soon meet. However, because I'm a writer who listens to his readers (and because I'm also confused), I have a question for you all. Who shall accompany N to the Shinobi World? Halsey? Rookie? YOU DECIDE! Leave in the review or PM me who you want to keep N company, and whoever gets the most mentions goes with him. **

**Also, just because I have ONI in this does not mean that they will have any contact with the Shinobi. Let's just say I have a plan for that. Anyway, read and review, and have a good day y'all!**


	4. Chapter 4

Halsey watched as they loaded up the rather…small freighter with gear for N's new mission. Assault rifles, battle rifles, some pistols, an SMG or two, and more than a few grenades of both the human and Covenant variety. Halsey sighed. That ship down there looked like a piece of junk; besides, why design a ship after a firefly of all things?

Walking away, she almost ran into the Spartan she had been thinking about. "N?" she said, looking at the young soldier irritably. "Aren't you supposed to be down there?" she asked, pointing at the ship.

N shrugged. "Yeah. Your point being ma'am?"

Halsey was about to retort when the lights in the _Infinity_ went out, only to be replaced by red emergency lighting…and N now wearing his helmet. "Come on Doc, we have a ride to catch," he said as he picked up the scientist bridal style. Halsey had no choice _other_ than to hold on for dear life as N jumped over the railing to the hanger floor below. Crashing down, the Spartan made a sizable dent in the floor and rushed off to his new ship.

In seconds, the two of them were in and rushing to the bridge. "Doc, I need you start the flight cycle and charge up the Slip-Space Drive!" N ordered as he went back to check on the cargo. Halsey decided not to argue and did as he said.

N reached the door to the cargo hold and was about to close it when Osman's voice came in blaring over the comms. "_Sierra Seven-two-one, what are you doing?!_" Osman yelled. "_You are in violation of UCMJ 09-85A, subparagraph twelve, section-_"

"Oh shut up!" N shouted as he sealed the bay, not even noticing the ODST who was still somehow asleep by the crate of BR85 HB 9.5x40mm ammunition. Rushing back into the cockpit, N slid into the reinforced chair as Marines came pouring into the bay. "Doc, status?"

"Ready for the most part!" Halsey said. Damn, she hadn't been in a situation like this since she had taken Kelly away from Blue Team to reach Onyx. Without a second's pause, N tapped a few controls and gunned the small Firefly out of the _Infinity_. Seconds later, the nearby frigates started launching Longswords.

"Fuck!" N yelled as he sent the ship into a barrel roll. "Doc, the Drive!"

"Seventy-two and climbing! We'll be at full charge in ten seconds!" Halsey yelled as the nearest fighter launched a missile pod at them. N hit one of the multitude of buttons, releasing countermeasures. They mostly worked; only one missile got past, and even then, it hit the shielded rear section.

N yanked the stick back and looped behind the fighter, keeping him in his sights. N barely heard Halsey shout out that the drive was ready to go. He punched in a set of random coordinates, and hit the big red button. And with that, N, Halsey, and one really unlucky OSDT known as Rookie disappeared from the UNSC.

\/\/

_Slip-space_

Everyone on board knew what Slipspace was like, and this was **not** Slipspace. Slipspace was an eleven dimension manifold that the normal human eye couldn't ever hope to see. The Technicolor display in N's viewport told him otherwise. That, and there was a Covvie corvette heading his way, and it looked like it was about to fall apart. Odd thing was, he was getting a UNSC transponder signal from it.

"Doc, think we can hook up with that thing, see what's making the signal?" he asked. Halsey nodded and got up, heading to the cargo bay to see if there was a single HAZMAT suit. What she found instead was an ODST who was rubbing his helmet in pain.

"Is your suit breached?" Halsey asked. The Rookie shook his head no. "Then help me find a HAZMAT suit!" The Rookie nodded and searched through the crates for a suit for Halsey. Two minutes later, the two of them found one, and after helping her get into it, the Rookie stood over by the door as N guided the ship over to the still disintegrating Corvette.

N managed to get the Firefly to "hover" right next to the hanger bay where the signal was coming from. "Okay Doc, I'm guessing we have five before that ship falls to pieces on us, so move fast!" he said over the comm.

"_Understood_," she responded as the Rookie opened up the door. "_I'll be taking our stowaway as well as back up._" The Rookie looked alarmed at that, and if Halsey could guess, the same was on N's face.

"Stowaway? Who the fuck is it?"

Halsey shrugged, a habit that she knew she'd picked up from N. "My old ODST escort. Preparing to enter Covenant ship," she said, walking up to the shimmering blue field of energy. The Rookie followed close behind her, an SMG in his hands. Silently swallowing the lump of fear she didn't know she had, Halsey took a step towards the field, and entered the ship.

The first thing she noticed were the bodies. Most of them were Covenant, but she did see a few bodies that belonged to the UNSC Marine Corps. Next on things that were odd was that all of the bodies so far were rather fresh; some Zealots hadn't stopped bleeding. Halsey felt a tap at her shoulder. She turned and saw the Rookie point towards a Pelican that had obviously seen better days, and one that had a Slipspace generator in the hold. Wait, Slipspace generator?

One of the side doors opened, and Rookie snapped his SMG at it, attempting to push Halsey to the ground. Halsey resisted, because she recognized the giant that came through the door. Walking up to them, the giant set down its M247 GPMG, and took off its helmet. "It's good to see some friendly faces," the giant said, his voice thick with a Hungarian accent.

"Jorge?" Halsey asked, walking up to him. Jorge stiffened.

"Ma'am," he said curtly, almost at attention. Halsey breathed a sigh of relieve, and one of sadness.

"Jorge, is there anything left in the Pelican?" she asked. Jorge shook his head as he put his helmet back on.

"Not much Ma'am. A few more boxes of ammo for my gun, a pistol, two assault rifles, and a box of grenades. Why?"

"Because Jorge," Halsey said as she pointed at the ship she had come in. "We need to get back on that before this ship falls apart on us." Jorge nodded and went into the Pelican, coming out seconds later with all the ammo he'd need for his main weapon. Rookie looked at the Spartan and went into the Pelican, put the pistol on his thigh armor, and grabbed the grenades. Walking back to the Firefly, he saw Jorge securing his gun and ammo, and that Halsey didn't know what the hell to do.

"Ma'am, if you would be so kind as to retrieve the assault rifles?" Rookie asked, his quiet voice still managing to be heard clearly. Halsey looked at the Pelican and nodded, walking off to grab the guns. Rookie looked over at Jorge, who was now standing right next to him.

"I'll take these," he said, taking the grenades. Rookie didn't resist as Jorge took the box and left, just as Halsey came in with the rifles. Handing one to the Rookie, Halsey tapped the comm.

"N, we're back in. Sending Jorge up to you now," she said as Jorge secured the grenades. "Jorge, the bridge is up the stairs. You can't miss it." Jorge nodded and climbed up the ladder. Turning to the Rookie, she said, "Anywhere we can be secure?" The Rookie nodded as he pointed to the rooms in the upper deck.

/\/\

Jorge sat down next to N. "So, what do you want me to do?" he asked the younger Spartan. N pointed to a control panel.

"Make sure the Slipspace manifold doesn't collapse!" he cried out as a massive chunk of ship almost hit them as they flew off. Jorge nodded and turned his attention to the control panel. For the most part, he could understand it. There was the reactor core temperature and coolant levels, life support, Slipspace manifold integrity, and then the –

_CRAKA-BOOM!_

Sparks flew into Jorge's face as the Slipspace manifold display blew apart. The ship itself violently left Slipspace, and was now hurtling towards a planet below. "EVERYONE HOLD ON!" N yelled through the comms, his face scrunched tight as he fought the ship for control. "I'm a leaf in the wind, watch how I fly," he said as started controlling the ship. "Sir, I need you to hit the retros on my mark." Jorge grunted in confirmation and made his hand over the button.

The Rookie and Halsey were still in the hold, strapped onto one of the crates tightly. Halsey looked like she was about to pass out. The Rookie took out a small device, synced it with his helmet, and all of a sudden, Doom's 'At Hell's Gate," better known as E1M1, started blaring out of his helmet. Halsey struggled to move her head so that she could look at the Rookie. "You have to pick _now_ of all times?" she asked, obviously ticked. Defying the laws of normal physics, the Rookie shrugged casually as he soon started snoring. Halsey's jaw dropped. So this was the infamous Rookie from New Mombassa?! Damn, the kid could snore.

N watched as the ground came closer and closer to them. Eyeing the altimeter, he yelled out for Jorge to hit the retro thrusters. The big man did, pushing the button that would slow down the ship to where they wouldn't die after the first bounce of impact. N did his best to keep the ship level, but as it was, the small ship landed in a heavily wooded area, killed more than a few miles of trees in a straight line, and came to rest right before a small stone shrine.

N's safety harness snapped and sent him flying through the window, having him land next to the shrine; Jorge blacked out as pain assaulted his nerves, Halsey had passed out when the retro rockets fired, and the Rookie was writhing in almost the same pain Jorge had. N, well, N was still in pain, but happily out cold.

\_/\_/

Raynor was walking the halls of his manor when he saw the runner coming towards him. Nodding to the smaller coyote, Raynor waited for the runner to deliver his message. "My lord, something is wrong with the Seal!" he said panting.

Raynor was briefly paralyzed before he leapt off to the sacred pit, hoping that it wasn't too late. Using a few tricks up his metaphorical sleeve, Raynor managed to get to the pit in time to see a massive portal hovering in the middle of it. Shaman and Selena were there, but the young coyote fem, Raynor's own daughter, was caught in the portal's suction. Raynor jumped down and landed next to Shaman, grabbing his daughter with three of his five tails. "Selena, I've got you!" he cried out.

Selena's piercing gold eyes looked into her father's icy blue as she started to slip from his grasp. "Daddy, I love you!" she said tearfully, before the portal wrenched her out of Raynor's grasp, her small form disappearing in the blinding indigo light of the rupture.

"SELENA!" Raynor cried out as he watched helplessly as not only his daughter disappeared, but the portal as well. Turning wildly to Shaman, tears in his eyes, Raynor went ballistic. "Shaman, what happened? Where's my daughter?"

Shaman trembled, but whether it was from fear or exhaustion, no one could tell. "I don't know what happened to the seal. I just don't know. As for Selena, I believe that she has been sent to meet our summoner," she said wearily.

Raynor shook in anger and seconds later, howled longingly at the moon that showed itself from behind the clouds.

/_\/_\

**This basically concludes what I'd call the 'Prologue' section of "Naruto: Hayabusa." As always, reviews, critiques, and suggestions are welcome! Now, dear readers, here is a question: Should I have Naruto's parents be alive, or shall I have his life proceed as 'normal?' Tell me in your reviews! And look out for a continuation of Kakashi's mask gag sometime soon! Enjoy!**


	5. Chapter 5

Pain lanced through N's body as woke from the crash. Looking around, N saw that he had landed in front of a small stone shrine in the forest. Sitting up, N reached up and took off his Mk. V [B] helmet, breathing in the air. Well, he wasn't having any trouble breathing, so that proved that the air was safe to breathe. An animal whined, bringing N's head to turn to the side and look down.

Laying down next to him was a coyote. It was about two and a half feet long, not counting the tails…wait, tails?! N rubbed his eyes to make sure he wasn't hallucinating, staring at the two tails located on the coyote's rear. The Spartan V scooted closer to the coyote and was about to tap it on the side when it twitched and stirred, waking up.

/[]\_/[]\

Selena woke up slowly, not sure where she was. The last thing she remembered was…now shaking, Selena started to cry, knowing that as a rather weak tailed Coyote, she wasn't able to transport herself back home. Hell, she didn't even know if there were any of her kind's shrines lying about anymore. Suddenly, she felt herself being picked up and petted, nimble, armored fingers stroking her back in comfort. Cracking an eye open, Selena saw a human in bulky armor looking down at her. She jumped, landing a few feet away and asked fearfully, "Who are you?"

\[]/_\[]/

N looked at the coyote dumbly. It…talked. And while that in and of itself was weird as hell, N was further stupefied as the coyote asked who he was again. N shook his head, clearing his thoughts. Besides, the coyote didn't seem like it was that much of a threat. "Um, my name's N," he said, watching the coyote's reaction.

Selena looked at this…'N,' in fear. He wasn't what her father had described to her as what a human looked like, but then again, no one among her species save for the clan heads had seen a human in the past few thousand years. And while they were allied with the Foxes, the Coyotes were a bit more cautious about who they gave their contract to than even their vulpine cousins. "W-Where did you come from?" she asked again, trying not to shake. N pointed to a spot behind her.

Selena turned and saw a massive metal _thing_ just sitting in the ground. Staring at it wide eyed, Selena backed up slowly until her tails brushed against something hard, angular, and shaped like a leg. Turning her head, she saw the N was also looking at the metal thing in what seemed to be annoyance.

"Just got that ship too," he muttered as he started walking towards it. "Hope the controls weren't fried in the crash."

Selena looked at the ship in shock. "**That's** a ship?!" she said incredulously. "I don't think it would last two seconds in the water!"

N shook his head as he inspected the control panel. "Uh, this was never designed to be in the water in the first place. It's a starship. Well, it was one," he said as he saw the badly damaged starboard engine. Pushing a button, the doors to the cargo bay opened, startling Selena as she whipped her head to the bay. N walked in and started unstrapping Doctor Halsey and the Rookie from the crate of medical supplies.

Hearing a resounding clang of footsteps, N and Selena looked up to Jorge walking down to the ladder, holding his head. "Az átkozott," Jorge swore in Hungarian. "That was the best landing I've ever seen. But I don't remember crashes giving you pain like the augmentations."

Selena just stared at the _giant_ that was coming towards her and N. Looking quickly, she found a small space between a crate and the wall and rushed over to it, squeezing herself in, trying to hide.

Jorge looked at N. "Do you we have a-"

"Yeah, I know," N said. "But trust me, I don't think she's a wild animal. She talks, and to top it all off, she-"

Jorge held up a finger in confusion, silencing N. "She can talk?" Jorge asked. N nodded. "I see." The massive Spartan-II looked down at Halsey. "Is she okay?"

N shrugged. "She's alive, but out cold. Want to help?" Jorge nodded and came down. N continued unbuckling Halsey while Jorge dealt with Rookie.

Selena watched from the crack between the crate and the wall. N, and the giant named Jorge, were taking another two humans who were strapped to a crate down. Of the two figures, the one on the left seemed to be what her father described as a human female. But she seemed rather…old. The one on the right though,…it seemed to be some sort of human shaped golem. She couldn't see any face on it, and what she assumed the face to be was nothing but a metallic blue.

Jorge turned to N after they were done. "So, who are you?" N sighed.

"Spartan-V prototype Bravo Seven-Two-One, N," he replied sadly. "Currently AWOL and subject to summary execution from ONI."

Jorge cocked his head. "Why's that?"

N turned to the open cargo bay doors. "Because I am quite literally the property of ONI. I was born in a lab, raised in a lab, and don't exist on any official documentation. Sir, I am a lab rat. I am DISPOSABLE," N explained as he watched the trees swaying in the wind.

Jorge looked at his new companion. "And you thought running away would solve things?"

N shrugged half-heartedly. "I don't know. I just want to be able to live my life how I want it."

Jorge walked over to him and put his armored arm over the young Spartan's shoulders. "I'm sorry for your life. But tell, would you have gone with the Insurrection?"

N shook his head. "No. They're willing to kill innocent people just to make a point. I'd rather just help people in any way I can. Just not as a tool that ONI sends in to mop up messes."

Jorge nodded in understanding. "I see. Any idea where we are?"

N chuckled. "Sir, I've seen some of ONI's biggest damn secrets. Talking, two-tailed coyotes ain't one of them. Whatever happened in Slipspace, we couldn't possibly replicate. Not with the ship like this. Like it or not sir, we're stuck here."

Jorge looked to the sky. "Spartan, do you want to know a secret?" N looked up at Jorge. "I've always wanted an early retirement. Or at least, the chance to not kill constantly."

N smiled. "I can drink to that."

Selena whimpered as she came out from her hiding spot, looking up at N pitifully. "Umm, uhh," she stuttered. N crouched down to Selena's level.

"Yeah?"

Selena gulped. "D-Did you by any chance sign a, um, contract?" she asked. The look on N's face as he registered the question was priceless to both Jorge and Selena. "Because, well, that was my family's contract, and well, I'm supposed to be some sort of guide, but I was taken from my dad, the Seal…" Selena couldn't continue as she started to cry.

Years later, Jorge would look back on this moment and try to think up of a reason on why he had tried to comfort the strange, talking animal. And Jorge never would be able to figure it out. But in the present time, the giant of a man sat down, picked up Selena, and held her in his arms, trying to sooth her by softly singing in Hungarian.

'_Együtt leszünk örökre, mindörökre, mert azt ígérte, hogy a Sun a magányos, meg tudjuk nézni a nagy narancssárga , lenyugvó nap megsúgok, - nem lesz semmi baj" szeretném, kérem tolmácsolja ezt az érzést,'_ Jorge sang softly, stroking the fur behind Selena's ears. The poor little coyote pup silently cried as she tried to snuggle closer into the armored soldier's chest. N turned away, not wanting Jorge to see his single, silent tear. Standing up, N grabbed a DMR from one of the crates.

"I'll be back soon, okay?" he said quietly, knowing that Jorge heard him. Leaving, N stopped to pick up his helmet and put it on. Now satisfied, N continued onward, taking his first steps into a new life.

[]/\[]

Naruto had been walking around Konoha's quiet nighttime streets when he saw it. The eight year old blonde watched in awe as the giant falling star streaked through the sky, landing in the forest. Moments after it disappeared from his field of vision, Naruto heard a muted boom as the thing landed. Naturally, he was very curious, but there was just one thing that held him back; the village drunks.

For as long as he could remember, Naruto had been ignored, beaten, and on several occasions so far, almost killed. He didn't know why, but it certainly got worse on the day that the village celebrated the Fourth's defeat of the Kyuubi no Kitsune. Sighing unhappily, Naruto turned around and went back to his apartment. Maybe he could talk to Jiji tomorrow about it.

:\_/:

**Another chapter, another question. And the question is…how did you all like how I presented Jorge? I mean, let's face it, no one knows what happens in a Slipspace drive malfunction, because no one has ever come back to tell the tale! Anyway, we, dear readers, are getting to where two worlds collide. So please, continue with the comments and reviews, and thank you all for making me keep going! The fact that people are reading this is enough to make me smile.**

**Gai and Lee: Yes, your story shines brightly with the flames of-**

***I violently proceed to pound them into submission with…a spork.***

**Gai and Lee: *Twitch, twitch**groan***

**Anyway, read and review, and have a nice day!^^**


	6. Chapter 6

Dawn had broken out a couple of hours ago, and N was still looking at the rather large…village, is the translation from the sign on the gate said. In a word, odd. More than a third of the buildings seemed new, with the rest in various states of repair. On the nearby mountain, there were four faces etched into the face, almost like the old United States' Mount Rushmore. Not that N had actually seen Mt. Rushmore for himself. But that was beside the point. N activated his S-III Headhunter grade Active Camo and approached the village.

/\/\

Another dawn, another day…and once again, Uzamaki Naruto was being chased through Konoha. A couple of days ago, it was because he had accidentally gone near the Uchiha Compound; in that particular case, Weasel came in and whisked him away. This time, it was for daring to go to the marketplace. Only this time, Naruto had not only angry villagers to deal with, but a few chunin as well. Hoping to confuse them, Naruto turned into an alley and slammed into…nothing? The Fox inside growled/whined in confusion as Naruto tried to see what he had run into.

\/\/

N was surprised that he had managed to sneak in as far as he did into the village as he did. Currently, the Spartan was in an alley near what he assumed to be the marketplace. He had been looking to his right when he saw a blip on his motion tracker and something small barrel into him. N turned and looked down to see a kid trying to see through the active camouflage. The boy seemed to be eight years old, blonde, with three whisker marks on each cheek. N was about to leave the kid when he saw the mob come in screaming, "Kill the demon!" "Let's finish what the Lord Fourth started!" and what perplexed N most of all was, "Give me back my family monster!" N looked back at the boy and saw his terrified expression and acted. He stepped in front of the boy and decloaked.

Naruto-and to a much more shocked extent, the mob-watched as a heavily armored figure materialized out of nowhere. No way was it a samurai; samurai weren't the type to sneak around, that was a shinobi's job. And whatever this thing carried, it was long, it was blocky, and it seemed completely useless. One brave chunin rushed forward to try and tackle this thing to the ground. Seconds later, said chunin was bent sent back through the air into the mob.

N cracked his neck. Along the way through the village, he had heard some talk about shinobi, and how that was apparently a very good job and practically a civic duty. He had also heard that ninja were supposed to be the elite. The guy he had just thrown had now disproved that theory. Another ninja, this one a bit older, threw some knives in the kid's direction. N twisted and gently hugged the boy, watching as the knives sent his shields down…by a hair. The knives imbedded themselves into the walls of the alley, and N knew that it was time to get this kid to safety. The assholes in ONI didn't teach him how to fight and protect civilians well, and Director Church wasn't an advocate of that either. Well, actually, it was toss-up between him and Carolina. Oh, and then there was Maine, South…probably Wyoming. N highly doubted that Wash hated civilians; hell, he was still young enough to have some of his naïve civilian ways keep him alive in the Freelancers.

So, N did the only sensible thing that he could do at the moment. He grabbed the boy, held him close to his chest, and ran like hell. It was about five seconds and two hundred and fifty meters later that the ninja in the mob reacted to the problem by attempting to follow. The key word being _attempted_. Because quite simply, no normal human, shinobi or not, was going to be capable of catching a running Spartan doing parkour in a reflex enhancing piece of powered assault armor. Not unless you were either a highly experienced jounin, an ANBU, or as was the case when N had to duck and roll underneath a green…thing, Maito Gai on his usual training run that was interrupted by the sight of an armored being within Konoha's walls.

N stopped and watching, his unseen eyelids twitching as a green spandex wearing buff clone of one of the Beatles turned and looked. And N's attention was immediately drawn to the man's…_eyebrows_. Hell, N wasn't even sure if those things were eyebrows or caterpillars that had decided to pitch permanent residence on the man's face. It was then that N also noted the arrival of three more possible targets; two of them wore masks depicting animals, one a dog and the other _could_ have been a ferret. The last one was an old guy, who looked at N in a way that reminded the poor Spartan of Parangosky, the damned harpy.

"Ojīsan!" cried out the boy. Thank God N knew that _oj__ī_ was Japanese for 'Grandfather,' so N set the kid down gently, stunning the four adults, and then promptly turned and tried to walk away. Just as he was about to sprint away, N felt a hand on his leg. N looked back down to see the kid try and pull him by his leg back to the old man.

"Would you mind telling me what it is you did to earn Naruto's trust?" the old man asked. N looked between the old man and the kid.

"You're named after a ramen topping?" N asked Naruto incredulously. Naruto nodded. N had to resist the urge to facepalm. "Okay, um, Naruto, I need you to let go of my armor."

"Why?" Naruto asked, not letting go off the armor.

N looked at his motion tracker and saw the mob coming in. "Because I don't want to get caught in that mob again," he said bluntly. The old guy's eyes widened.

"All of you, with me!" he said. "That means you too stranger." The old guy just…disappeared in a swirl of leaves, and so did Dog. Ferret waited for N to pick up Naruto and gestured to the tower near the mountain. N nodded and followed the masked ninja, activating his comm as he did so.

"_Yes?_" came the weathered voice of Jorge.

"Sir, I screwed up, and am now in the thick of local politics," N replied bluntly.

"_I see. And did you that I could see everything from here?_" N gulped. "_Don't worry, you did an honorable thing. And whatever you said to the pup, well, you were right. The engine's fried; we're not going anywhere off this rock._"

"Okay sir, but what should I tell them?" the younger Spartan asked as he entered the tower, slowing down to a brisk walk.

"_N, you know this culture better than any one of us, Halsey included. For now, YOU'RE the one who calls the shots on what to do,_" Jorge said back.

"Thanks for the help sir," N muttered sadly as he entered the office of the old man.

\\/\\/

Hiruzen Sarutobi sat behind his desk and looked at the armored stranger in front of him. He knew that this wasn't a samurai; even _they_ didn't wear that much armor. "So," the old man asked taking out his pipe, "Who, and what, are you?"

The armored figure looked around, its gaze settling on each hidden ANBU shinobi in the office before reaching up for its helmet. Lightly twisting it, the figure lifted the helmet, the silver-blue faceplate soon leaving behind…

Hiruzen and Dog gasped. They saw a young man looking back at the Hokage, only, he looked very much like Minato. Well, somewhat. That wild hair was an intriguing shade of red, his eyes shone with a calculating emerald gleam, and then there was that odd tattoo of bars on his left cheek. The boy clipped his helmet to the belt at his waist and sighed.

"Hokage-sama," the boy said in respect. "What I'm about to say is considered far above top secret where I'm from." Hiruzen nodded as he beckoned for Weasel to take Naruto back to his home. Once the young child was outside, Hiruzen motioned for the boy to continue.

The boy gulped before speaking. "My name is N. And before you ask, no, it isn't a joke. As far as I know, it pretty much is my name. I was a part of a project from the upper echelons of my government's military intelligence agency that created super-soldiers. I…I was, and am, the prototype for the fifth series of those super-soldiers."

Hiruzen raised a hand. "And what was the purpose behind the creation of these super-soldiers?" he asked.

N shrugged. "Originally, there was the ORION Project. Adult volunteers for taking out rebels. When they didn't work well…the Office of Naval Intelligence greenlit the Spartan-II Program. They took seventy-five children, ages five through seven, and turned them into the ultimate soldiers. Only thirty-three graduated at full combat capacity. A little over a dozen were crippled due to injuries. The rest were killed. Then came the War."

For the next ten minutes, N stood there, detailing what he could about the Human-Covenant War, and how the Spartan-IIs, along the unappreciated-and unknown-actions of the Spartan-IIIs helped to turn the tide of war. And then the surprising alliance with the Sangheili at the end of the war, and then N's escape from the system that never cared for him as a person, with one other person intentionally on his ship, one unwittingly brought on, and the last one found in Slipspace. Oh, then there was that scroll.

"N, may I see this scroll?" Hiruzen asked. N shook his head.

"Back on the ship."

Hiruzen sighed. "I see. I am going to assume that you will not let us see how to create your weapons and armor?" he asked.

N's face hardened. "And I won't let you figure out how to make Spartans either. All I want, hell, all any of us on that ship want is a place to be in peace. And if you want, then yeah, we'll provide you all with whatever service we can. I know that Doctor Halsey will want to be in the hospital."

Hiruzen nodded. "Of course. And as for you all, tomorrow, you will have to be in that hospital anyway for a full checkup. It would be interesting to see if you have chakra," he said kindly. "And unofficially, I have a mission for you."

N tilted his head. "Sir?"

Hiruzen sighed. "Do you remember the boy's name that you met?"

N let loose a single chuckle. "Yeah, Naruto. Still, who names their after a ramen topping?" Hiruzen looked at him, his face grim.

"N, Naruto is an orphan."

N stood there speechless, and then hung his head in shame. "I…I guess I can sympathize. But then, what does that have to do with me?"

Hiruzen sighed. "N, I'll be giving you Naruto's last name." _And also Minato's, if all goes well._ "You'll be the big brother that he never had. Do you think you can handle that?"

N looked at the Third Hokage. "Sir, I'm a Spartan. I have yet to see something that I couldn't handle."

Hiruzen smiled. "Well then, Uzamaki N, welcome to Konohagakure, the Village Hidden in the Leaves," he said.

N smiled back. Well, now things were starting to look up. Oh wait…Halsey and Jorge and the Rookie. Oh shit….


End file.
